BEDFORD, Virginia (AP) -- A high school student who was hospitalized for more than a week with an antibiotic-resistant staph infection has died, and officials shut down 21 schools for cleaning to keep the illness from spreading.

Ashton Bonds, 17, a senior at Staunton River High School, died Monday after he was found to have Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, or MRSA, his mother said.

There were 988 reported deaths among infected people in the study, for a rate of 6.3 per 100,000. That would translate to 18,650 deaths annually, although the researchers don't know if MRSA was the cause in all cases.

If these deaths all were related to staph infections, the total would exceed other better-known causes of death including AIDS -- which killed an estimated 17,011 Americans in 2005 -- said Dr. Elizabeth Bancroft of the Los Angeles County Health Department, the editorial author.

The results underscore the need for better prevention measures. That includes curbing the overuse of antibiotics and improving hand-washing and other hygiene procedures among hospital workers, said the CDC's Dr. Scott Fridkin, a study co-author. . . .

The bacteria don't respond to penicillin-related antibiotics once commonly used to treat them, partly because of overuse. They can be treated with other drugs but health officials worry that their overuse could cause the germ to become resistant to those, too. . . .

Dr. Buddy Creech, an infectious disease specialist at Vanderbilt University, said the JAMA study emphasizes the broad scope of the drug-resistant staph "epidemic," and highlights the need for a vaccine, which he called "the holy grail of staphylococcal research."

This article is interesting because the theme of overused antibiotics came up in The Corporation -- where it wasn't just the "overuse" of antibiotics in humans directly but the indirect use of antibiotics in humans through the consumption of chemically-enhanced dairy products that led to deaths by staph infection. The company most to blame for the use of chemicals in cows is Monsanto -- the makers of agent orange.

If I'm understanding the issue correctly, the rGBH given to cows leads to infections in the overworked udders, and these infections require the use of antibiotics in the cows, on top of the hormones.

We have this article to consider, although at the time of this writing I am unable to verify the owners of the website.

Milk processing begins when cows are fed antibiotics to treat illnesses including mastitis (infection of the udder). This practice leads to antibiotic residues in cow's milk, which is compounded by the fact that after milking, the product is shipped to a central collection facility where residues effectively contaminate the entire supply. This is of concern to Health Canada because constant low-level exposure to antibiotics leads to allergies in individuals and the development of antibiotic-resistant bacterial strains. Although strict quarantine procedures for treated animals are recommended by many prominent research institutions, including Guelph University in Ontario, the reality is that the therapeutic and preventive use of antibiotics is too widespread a practice to be controlled through voluntary quarantine guidelines. . . .

Antibiotic-based allergies

Up to 2.5 percent of the US population is now allergic to penicillin, with 400 related deaths reported in 2001. This is in large part believed to be the result of the use of antibiotics in agricultural animals.

In addition to that article, there is a book out. I haven't reviewed it myself, but it's available through The Corporation website.

Quote:

What’s In Your Milk?: An Exposé of Industry and Government Cover-Up on the Dangers of the Genetically Engineered (rBGH) Milk You're Drinkingby Samuel S. Epstein M.D.

A powerful exposé of the dangers of Monsanto's genetically engineered (rBGH) milk, and its no-holds-barred conspiracy to suppress this information. rBGH (recombinant Bovine Growth Hormone) is a genetically engineered, potent variant of the natural growth hormone produced by cows. Manufactured by Monsanto, it is sold to dairy farmers under the trade name POSILAC. Injection of this hormone forces cows to increase their milk production by about 10%.

The book is a unique resource on rBGH milk. It presents Dr. Epstein's trailblazing scientific publications since 1989, which have played a major role in influencing other nations, including all of Europe, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and Japan to ban rBGH milk. The book also presents: the author's editorials and letters to major newspapers, and correspondence with the FDA, Congressman John Conyers, and other key members of Congress and the Senate.

Of compelling interest is the story behind Fox Television's firing of Jane Akre, a veteran journalist, following her in-depth interview on rBGH with Dr. Epstein, his subsequent day-long deposition by Monsanto on her behalf, her subsequent litigation against Fox, and Fox's successful counter suit. This story was told to great effect in the film The Corporation, which featured interviews with both Epstein and Akre.

There seems to be plenty of information on all the reasons why milk is bad for you, but the underreported rise of staph infections to a death-level that rivals, if not surpasses, AIDS, is the issue -- conscienceless corporations killing people.

Some 79 million liters of Agent Orange herbicides were dropped on the jungles of Vietnam from 1961-1971 in an attempt to defoliate the rainforest and deny any cover for the VietCong guerilla forces resisting the United States occupation of Vietnam.

Today in Vietnam there are 150,000 other children like Kiet, whose parents allege their birth defects are the result of exposure to Agent Orange during the war, or the consumption of dioxin-contaminated food and water since 1975.

The Vietnamese government estimates that three million Vietnamese were exposed to these chemicals during the war, and that at least 800,000 suffer serious health problems today as a result.

In February 2004, the newly-formed Vietnamese Association of Victims of Agent Orange (VAVA) filed a class action law suit in a New York court, against Monsanto and 36 other manufacturers of the poisonous chemical.

The plaintiffs and their lawyers deliberately chose the very same court that had previously presided over the only previous lawsuit brought against Agent Orange manufacturers, by U.S. war veterans. Indeed, the same judge -- Jack Weinstein -- is currently hearing pretrial arguments in the case.

A Google Image search on "Agent Orange Monsanto" yields numerous graphic photos of deformed babies in Vietnam. It's too ing to post, but the inquiring researcher is free to run the search for themselves.

Problem is, you can't get away from it. Even the most careful shopper is getting chemicals from industry and germs from other people who do not understand the problems with food as it is sold in America.